Painter&#39;s equipment



Oct. 12, E37 w. R. VAN WINKLE PAINTER'S EQUIPMENT Filed June 11, 1956 INVENTOR.

fV/Y/lkzm Van/While W ATTORNE Y6 Patented Oct. 12, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PAINTERS EQUIPMENT William R. Van Winkle, Madlsonvilie, Ohio Application June 11, 1936, Serial No. 84,632

'3 Claims. (01. 91-66) The present invention relates to. painters by the present invention, which will now be deequipment and particularly to such as may be scribed and explained in detail. used by painters engaged commercially in the In. Fig. 1, the character I! indicates generally painting trade. a rack or harness adapted to be carried upon the An object of the invention is to provide an arback of the painter, and to support a reservoir rangement of means whereby a painter may save I3'for paint or other liquid suitable for coating considerable time and effort on painting jobs. surfaces to be decorated or refinished. It is in- Another object of the invention is to provide tended that theterin "paint as used herein, shall means whereby a painter is enabled to complete include generally any liquids or preservatives a large painting job at less expense than herethat may be applied to a surface to be coated tofore, and with less bodily fatigue, so that the or treated. The rack or harness comprises a pair job may be uniformly high grade from start to of uprights I4 and I5 of any suitable material, finish. preferably strap metal, suitably connected to- Another object of the invention is to-provide. gether by any form of bracing means IS. The durable, inexpensive, and simple means for acupper ends of the uprights are developed into complishing the above objects. hooks l l for supporting the rack or harness upon The foregoing and other objects are attained the shoulders of the user. Suitable means are by the means described herein and disclosed in pr vi d r ri h r ek h rn to the the accompanying drawing, in which: user's body, which me ns m y Conveniently be Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a complete Provided in e o o b y ps I9 pajnters apparatus embodying t present adapted to encircle the chest or waist of the user. vention. At the lower ends of the uprights, the rack is pro- Fig. 2 is an enlarged'cross-sectional view taken Vided with supporting means the reservoir on line of one form of supporting means being indicated Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmental cross-sectional d Illustrated as horizontal rearwardly extended View taken on line f arms 29, properly spaced and proportioned to Fig 4 is a perspective View of a modified form support the reservoir. The reservoir may be held of reservoir applicable to the Fig. 1 combination. m place upon the support means 20 in any suit Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a modified form manner such as by means of a strap or band of painters apparatus embodying the invention 2 The rack or harness is of such length and Prior to the present invention, it was customary proportions that the paint or other treating subfor painters to use the same or similar cans in stance in the reservoir may gravitate to a brush cup or receptacle 22 in a manner to be described. which paint was supplied by the manufacturer, The brush cu or rece tame 22 ma be f met 1 as a receptacle into which the brush was dipped th it g t l f d o during the process of painting. This can or or er s a 6 ma er a o ep appro bucket was either hung upon a ladder rung by mating the length of the bristles of a brush, or mans of a hook or placed upon the scaffold or perhaps slightly in excess thereof, so that a brush may-be placed therein with the handle extend-' any other available supporting means, in the mg upwardly, and be supported in such position vlcmlty of the Work to be painted- It when the brush is not in actual use. The brush ways necessary to move the can or bucket from cup or receptacle pref rably is tapered toward place to place as W Work progressed, and to the bottom wall 23 thereof, the mouth 24 being stoop or bend over in order to dip the brush at somewhat larger than the bottom. The recepta intervals in order to replenish the supply of paint cle may be of metal or other suitable material, on the brush, The stopping and bend is P and it ispreferably provided with a reinforcing al s t most fetigulng p Of t Painter's head 25 at the mouth or upper edges thereof.

work, and the extra effort thereby made, neces- Means are provided for charging th cup r r sarily resulted in a considerable waste of time ceptacle th paint or th l k t ne thi a d xt e fati ue ef r mp t of t the reservoir I3. Said means may be in the form J' Moreover, frequent e e of the pa t of a charging nozzle 26 arranged to direct the can or bucket to various locations on the job repaint onto the bottom of the receptacle, the flow sulted in spilling of the paint or the application of paint being regulatable by any accepted form of paint rings, from the bottom of the bucket, to of valve or stop cock 21. The Valve or stop cock surfaces not intended to be painted. All of the is placed in fluid communication with the bottom bje n m n i above h ve bee obviated of the reservoir l3 by means of a flexible tube or that the rear wall 29 of the receptacle carries one or more hooks or supporting means 30 whereby the receptacle may be hung upon the clothing of the painter, or upon-a suitable belt or the like worn about his waist or limbs. Extending from the receptacle is a member 3| which carries one or more hooks 32 similar to the hook 311 and adapted likewise to engage a belt or other support means worn by the painter. The extended member 3|, together with the hook means 32 provide a handle for the brush cup or receptacle in the event that it is desired to detach the assembly from theperson and to hold it in one hand while using the brush in the other hand. Such use of the brush cup or receptacle may be desirable under certain circumstances. It will be understood, of course, that the hooks 32 are preferably integral with the extension 3!, and are arranged at the level of the hook 30 on the back of the receptacle. The hook 30 may be integral with a downwardly extended strap 33 of metal or the like which may be riveted or otherwise suitably secured to the rear wall of the cup or receptacle as indicated at 34.

The brush cup or receptacle may include a means for squeezing and/or holding a brush placed upright within the receptacle, such means being operable by hand and adapted for fixation while embracing a brush to be held within the receptacle or cup. The squeezing and holding means may consist of a pair of bell cranks or levers 35 and 36 connected together at their upper ends by means of. a rod or wire 31 which is so located as to cooperate with the forward upper edge 38 in squeezing the bristles or clamping the body of a brush placed within the receptacle and between the members 31 and 38; The lower ends of the bell cranks preferably are connected together by means of a transverse portion 39 which carries a depending latch piece or tongue 40. The latch piece or tongue is adapted to be engaged, at the will of the user, by a keeper or cooperative latch piece 4| which may be pivotally or otherwise mounted at the lower end 42 of the hook strap 33. In other words, movement of the keeper or latch piece 4! to the dotted line position indicated in Fig. 2, serves to limit counter-clockwise rotation of the bell cranks about their common shaft 43, which shaft is journalled upon the rear wall 29, in one or more bearings 44. The bearing as shown in the drawing, is an integral part of the hook strap 35, but in practice, suitable bearings for the brush squeezer and holder may be in the form of individual hinge le'aves fixed directly upon the receptacle wall. The inherent resiliency of the various parts of the brush squeezer and holder may be depended upon for the accommodation of various thicknesses of brush bodies between the elements 31 and 38, when it is desirable to clamp a brush therebetween, or to squeeze paint from the bristles of the brush. The connecting piece or red 31 normally serves the function of providing a ledge, separate from the bead at 38 of Fig. 2, over which the brush may be traversed when it is desired to merely remove excess paint from the brush, but

.not to, squeeze a substantial amount of paint from the bristles. It will be noted that the bar or rod 31, which is, in effect, a scraper for the bristles of a paint brush, is substantially uniformly spaced from the bead or upper edge 38 of the receptacle, so that excess paint may be removed from the bristles without having the paint to drip from the bead 38 exteriorly of the receptacle. When a brush is to be held between the .parts 31 and 38, the lower end of the hook strap 33 may be bent either forwardly or rearwardly to secure a proper spacing at 31-38 for any given brush, when the latch piece or keeper 4! is moved to the dotted line position.

In Fig. 3 is disclosed an adapter which may be used for connecting the flexible hose or tube 28 to a paint can of any ordinary size or capacity. The adapter preferably is in the form of a funnel 45 having a suitable. hose coupling at its lower constricted end 41, and an outwardly extended annular flange 48 at its top. The flange is suitably apertured as at 49 to receive a plurality of screws 58 having wing nuts 5| applied thereto, said screws passing through an interior metallic ring 52 and an annular gasket 53, between which ring and gasket is disposed the lid 54 of an ordinary paint can. The upper annular fiange of the funnel member is of a diameter such that the funnel member will fit the lid of a small paint can, for example, that of a quart can. The adapter will also fit the lids of larger cans, as will be understood, it being necessary only to punch holes in the lid to coincide with the holes of the adapter flange, for reception of the screws 50. After application of the adapter to a lid, the central portion of the lid may be broken away or punched downwardly into the adapter funnel, as indicated at 55. The can thus connected with the fiexible hose 28, may then be fastened to the rack or harness I2.

In Fig. 4 is disclosed a modified form of paint reservoir, which comprises a substantially fiat tank 58 having a lid 51 that may be removed when it is desired to pour paint into the tank. The bottom wall of the tank has an outlet pipe or nipple 58 adapted to have connection with a coupling 59 on the hose 28, for conveying paint from the tank to a brush cup or receptacle such as was described in connection with Figs. 1 and 2. The back of the tank 58 has mounted thereon the bands or straps 60 and GI whereby the tank may be applied either to the back or at the front of the user of the device. By means of the construction disclosed in Fig. 4, the rack or harness shown in Fig. 1 may be eliminated.

The Fig. 5 modification differs from the device of Figs. 1 and 4, in that the brush cup or receptacle 62 is integral with, or attached to, the tank 63. The bottom wall 64 of the tank or reservoir 63 is provided with a valve or stop cock 85 which has a nozzle 66 for feeding paint from the reservoir into the cup or receptacle 62, whence the paint is removed by dipping the brush therein. This form of the device is adapted to be applied at the front or side of the user's body, and held in position by means of a band or strap 61 mounted upon the back of the reservoir 63. The character 88 indicates a filler opening provided with a cap. It will be noted that the scraping edge 89 at the front of the brush cup is extended forwardly of the front wall 18, so that the brush may be dipped into the cup without interference with the tank or reservoir.

In using the devices herein disclosed, the brush cup or receptacle which is fed through the control valve, is supplied with a limited amount of paint so that the possibility of spilling is reduced to a minimum. Ordinarily, the brush cup will contain paint or the like at a depth of an inch or less, the depth depending upon the size of the brush being used; The valve or stop cock may be opened either fully or partially to maintain a desired level of paint in the brush cup, or, where a very thin paint is being used, the valve or' stop cock may be opened at intervals to supply the amount of paint desired. I As stated hereinbe fore, the brush cup or receptacle of Fig. 1 may be held in the hand instead of being attached to the painters belt or clothing, and when used in, that manner, the valve may be left open and the cup supplied with a desired amount of paint by merely elevating or lowering the cup relative to the level of paint in the reservoir.

The degree of flexibility of the tube or pipe 28 may be varied, if desired, so that by the use of a very substantial pipe or tube, the brush receptacle 22 may be sustained by the tube or pipe to a considerable extent. For example, by using a tube or pipe 28 of copper or like material, the brush receptacle may be sustained entirely thereby, so as to eliminate the need for hooks such as 30 and 32.

It is to be understood that various modifications and changes may be made in the structural details of the device, vvithin the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a painters apparatus, the combination of a fluid paint receptacle constituted of a standard paint can having a frictionally retained lid, and means for supporting said can with the lid applied thereto, in an inverted position upon the person of the user of the apparatus, an adapter comprising a funnel shaped member having an upper annular flange, and means for securing said flange to the outer face of the lid, the lid being punctured within the area defined by the annular flange of the adapter, a coupling means at the lower end of the funnel shaped member, a tube associated with said coupling means to convey fluid paint from the can through the punctured means for supporting said can with the lid applied thereto in an inverted position upon the person of the user of the apparatus, an adapter comprising a funnel shaped member having an upper annular flange, and means for securing said flange to the outer face of the lid, the lid being punctured within the area defined by the annular flange of the adapter, a coupling means at the lower end of the funnel shaped member, a tube associated with said coupling means to convey fluid paint from the can through the punctured lid thereof, a paint brush receptacle connected with the tube for reception of fluid paint conveyed by the tube, a fluid control valve interposed between thetube and the receptacle, for obtaining a desired feed of fluid paint into the receptacle.

3. In a painters apparatus, the combination of a fluid paint receptacle constituted of a standard paint can having a frictionally retained lid, and means for supporting said can with the lid applied thereto, in an inverted position upon the person of the user of the apparatus, an adapter comprising a funnel shaped member having an upper annular flange, and means for securing said flange to the outer face of the lid, the lid being punctured within the area defined by the annular flange of the adapter, a coupling means at the lower end of the funnel shaped member, a tube associated with said coupling means to convey fluid paint from the can through .the punctured lid thereof, a paint brush receptacle connected with the tube for reception of fluid paint conveyed by the tube, a fluid control valve interposed between the tube and the receptacle, for obtaining a desired feed of fluid paint into the receptacle, and means supporting the receptacle upon the person of the user at an elevation lower than the level of fluid in the reservoir, to establish a gravity feed of fluid to the receptacle.

WILLIAM R. VAN WINKLE. 

